From 1 August 2025, Queensland’s property legislation has introduced new seller disclosure requirements for lots in community title schemes. The previous Section 206 disclosure statement has been replaced by the Body Corporate Certificate – Form 33 (or Form 34 for specified two-lot schemes).
Form 33 is a comprehensive document that must be provided to a buyer before a contract is signed. It includes key information about the lot and the scheme, such as:
- Financial contributions and levies
- Insurance details
- Common property and service contracts
- By-laws and exclusive use areas
- Improvements to common property that benefit the lot
To ensure accurate and complete disclosures, it’s essential that any improvements affecting common property are approved through the correct voting mechanisms and recorded in the body corporate’s official records. This helps maintain transparency and supports smooth property transactions.
According to the legislation, committees may only make decisions within their delegated abilities by way of a formal Committee Meeting, or by using a Voting Outside Committee Meeting (sometimes called a VOC, VOCM or Flying Minute).
It’s also important to ensure your body corporate has its registered by-laws on file. If your scheme is still operating under default or outdated by-laws, such as the Schedule 3 by-laws under BUGTA or the Schedule 4 default by-laws under the BCCM Act, or if your by-laws haven’t been reviewed in some time, now may be a good time to consider a comprehensive by-law review.
Recent legislative changes have introduced new opportunities for bodies corporate to regulate matters such as:
- Towing vehicles parked in breach of by-laws without needing a contravention notice
- Smoking restrictions, including outdoor areas of lots and common property
- Pet ownership, with clearer approval mechanisms and fewer restrictions
These provisions are not included in default or historical by-laws, so now is an ideal time to consider a full by-law review to ensure your community’s by-laws remain relevant and effective.
Bodies corporate should ensure they are budgeting to undertake any necessary title searches to obtain copies of registered by-laws from the Titles Office, or to update their by-laws and lodge a new CMS if the body corporate has not done so in the last 25 years (since Community Management Statements came into force).
For more information on your current by-laws, or for guidance on conducting a by-law review, please reach out to your strata manager.